Solo chick is lonely

[TropicalChick]

Hi - I’ve had a hatch with just one lone chick - Mom abandoned her at 6 weeks on the dot and the poor thing is alone for 6 more weeks until I can allow her out into the rest of the flock -

I go down and let her into the coop periodically but there are stretches where she’s alone in her cage - it has plenty of room. At night she wants to roost with the others and tries to jump onto the railing of her cage but I can’t let her roost yet - the rest of the flock will attack her

What can I put in the cage to help keep her engaged?

 

[Blue Raptor]

Hi - I’ve had a hatch with just one lone chick - Mom abandoned her at 6 weeks on the dot and the poor thing is alone for 6 more weeks until I can allow her out into the rest of the flock -

I go down and let her into the coop periodically but there are stretches where she’s alone in her cage - it has plenty of room. At night she wants to roost with the others and tries to jump onto the railing of her cage but I can’t let her roost yet - the rest of the flock will attack her

What can I put in the cage to help keep her engaged?

You could try to fix up a little roost for her in her cage. You could sprinkle a couple treats outside her cage for the chickens, and some for her too so she isn’t left out. If you can bring the cage outside so that she can forage (or bring in a peice of dirt with a bunch of grass growing on it).

 

[nuthatched]

Why is she alone for the next 6 weeks? Momma weaned her and she should have been protecting her from the other to integrate for last few weeks.

 

[TropicalChick]

You could try to fix up a little roost for her in her cage. You could sprinkle a couple treats outside her cage for the chickens, and some for her too so she isn’t left out. If you can bring the cage outside so that she can forage (or bring in a peice of dirt with a bunch of grass growing on it).

I will do this. I have to build something kind of sturdy for her to spend some time outside- rt now she’s kind of small - I’m in Costa Rica and the chirping brings the iguanas to the yard - I’ll see if I can fit a roost in her cage somehow - I did put a piece of 2x4 into the cage for her to grip on - thanks so much for the suggestions!

 

[TropicalChick]

Why is she alone for the next 6 weeks? Momma weaned her and she should have been protecting her from the other to integrate for last few weeks.

Well I have to separate the momma and the babies - I have a mixed flock of old layers and they are really really mean. I’ve been slowing breeding my own flock with some hens that haven’t had the instinct bred out of them.

So if I just leave a broody to roost in the nest box all the other chickens crowd in and lay more eggs in THAT box for some reason. I have a lot of nest boxes but for some reason they end up depositing a ton of eggs into the one Brody’s box.

So I usually take the broody box and separate it into its own enclosure- so far both times at 6 weeks mom lays a new egg jumps out of the cage with the baby and has no interest in the baby any longer. She doesn’t try to get back in and if I allow baby out with her I to the coop she entirely ignores it. The first time this happened I had two babies that grew up together- but this last hatch only had one because of the fore mentioned pile on in the nest box, the mom kicked all the eggs out except one and that’s how this little chick ended up a lone wolf as it were. - hope this makes sense.

I have 2 roosters and 11 other hens - but I also live in Costa Rica where the iguanas are bigger than the baby is rt now - so I don’t usually let them full out I tot he yard until they’re 12 weeks old and are big and fast enough to handle themselves.

The moms so far seem to just check out at 6 weeks. I’ve toyed with not separating the Mom and chicks from the larger flock - but the layer hens seem to just attack the mom and the babies and they outnumber my ‘natural’ hens that still have their instincts to brood and raise chicks.

 

[Blue Raptor]

I will do this. I have to build something kind of sturdy for her to spend some time outside- rt now she’s kind of small - I’m in Costa Rica and the chirping brings the iguanas to the yard - I’ll see if I can fit a roost in her cage somehow - I did put a piece of 2x4 into the cage for her to grip on - thanks so much for the suggestions!

No problem! Hope it works out!